


Together Within Sweet and Bitter

by UnicornPopcorn14



Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Charcter injury, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Memories, fic request
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:06:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25124389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnicornPopcorn14/pseuds/UnicornPopcorn14
Summary: After an incident, the turtles have a conversation with their bestfriend, and they regain some memories they lived together…Ones that are pleasant and unpleasant at the same time…A ficcy requested by@bastardbeewoman!
Relationships: Turtles & April
Comments: 7
Kudos: 40





	Together Within Sweet and Bitter

**Author's Note:**

> “-April gets hurt (minor injury) during a fight and the bros keep blaming themselves bc of it? Or maybe it could be with them younger and she ended up hurting herself in one of their shenanigans? And they worry thinking they fucked up and they wont have any friends again?” -[@bastardbeewoman](https://twitter.com/bastardbeewoman?s=20)
> 
> \--------------------------------------
> 
>  _Italic_ = flashback!

“A-…-ril?”

“C-…-hea-…-us-…?”

“Wak-…-p!!!”

“D-…-n’t scare us-…-ike that!!”

Words progressively start to get intelligible in her mind. She opens her eyes, hissing at the sharp pain that is lingering in her leg, and the pounding that is choosing to stay in her head.

“APRIL!!” Before she can comprehend what is going on, eight arms wrap around her as she tries to sit up, which causes her to lie on her back again.

“YOU’RE ALI-I-I-VEE!!” She recognizes the tone as Mikey sobbing in distress yet content.

“You gave us quite a scare!” Donnie yells.

“Don’t do that again!!!” Leo is the one to demand, clutching harder on April.

“Guys. This is sweet and all. But you’re kinda hurting me…” April says in a muffled voice between the arms of the four brothers, and the said turtles take no time to freak out and let her go,

“OH WE’RESOSORRY!” Leo apologizes promptly.

“Are you okay, April?” Raph asks afterwards.

Before she answers, April attempts to sit up, now taking notice of the surroundings. Huh, they’re in an alleyway? Why aren’t they home? Why isn’t _she_ home? No, wait a minute… Where did that ugly mutant go??

“I think I’ll be fine.” She manages to say, the ringing in her ears still too loud, “What happened?”

April realizes how her friends suddenly become tense, and Raph talks before she can question it,

“We barely made it out of the building before it collapsed…” The leader talks heavily, staring at the direction they came from.

“And… why aren’t we in the lair…?” The teen asks with a raised brow.

“You weren’t talking, April! We freaked out!” Mikey blurts.

“Affirmative. I needed to check on you before heading down.” Donnie says, his tone almost containing guilt, _almost_ , “Your silence was aggravating all of us.”

April rolls her eyes, wincing suddenly when the pain in her head returns. She brings up a hand on it, to discover that a knot has already formed. Trying to remember what caused this is hard, especially when her head decides to hurt every time she thinks.

“Are you okay?” Leo checks, and April is starting to get exasperated.

“YES! Yes, I’m okay! Why are you guys acting like this? You’re making it look like this is all your fault!”

A pause causes her to look up at her friends, who wore some horrified expressions. That’s what reminds her of what happened before she blacked out instantly,

_“DONNIE, LOOK OUT!”_

_PUSH!_

_BOOM!_

_“APRIL!”_

Her eyes widen slightly, her form slacking as she turns to the four before her, who are now averting their eyes in total guilt.

“Oh…” She only says, “I- Donnie- Guys, this _isn’t_ your fault…”

“No, it is!” Leo lashes, “Well, it’s mostly Donnie’s, anyway. _Who_ in his right mind starts texting in the middle of a fight?!” He turns to his brother.

Donnie shrinks upon the angry looks he’s receiving from his brothers, “I WAS- *sigh* Alright, I have nothing in my defense. I am taking 100% responsibility on this one…” He says sadly.

“Guys, you don’t need to blame Donnie…” April states, for the guys to turn their attention to her, “I chose to take his hit because I _wanted_ to…”

The siblings exchange looks in some concern and doubt.

“April…” Raph speaks, “We know where you’re comin’ from… But we can’t let that happen…”

“Yeah,” Leo confirms, “you see… we can take a few hits… you, as a human… eeeeeeh…” he winces

April’s eyes close halfway, irritated, “Uhm… what’s wrong with me?”

“NOTHING!” Mikey exclaims with a sweat drop, afraid April will beat the heck out of them, “What _Leo’s_ saying is, don’t do that again…”

“Yup!” Raph says, just as nervous, “Besides, Donnie’s the most armored outa’ all of us. That hit wouldn’t have hurt him that much…”

“Raph is right. Taking in account that it’s _Raph_. But he’s right.” Donnie confirms, “The possibility of me getting half of the injuries you contain right now is rare. More of impossible, actually.”

April pouts, crossing her arms and huffs, “Sorry for carin’ about you, then…”

“April, I’m not-” Donnie is about to say something, but retreats with a tired exhale, “Let us just get you to the lair. We need to patch you up…”

April’s gaze shifts towards her leg, which seems broken, then huffs again, “Fine…”

Donnie opens up the seat designed for her in his battle shell, and April lets Raph pick her up and secure her on it. The boys run for a little while in the streets of New York, minding staying out of the light, then hop in the manhole cover that leads directly to their home.

**ROTTMNT**

In the infirmary, April is seated on the medical bed, and the female-teen can sense the stress coming out of her turtle friends. Donnie is moving everywhere, trying to find the supplies needed. Raph is helping him with whatever he requests. Leo and Mikey are sitting beside her in the bed, legs moving up and down in obvious worry.

April would say that this isn’t new. Whenever she gets hurt these are the reactions that come out of her friends most of the time. Even after she reassures them that she’s fine… _countless times_.

And April appreciates the concern, but it feels as if they are worrying themselves too much, to the point that it’s affecting them more than it is affecting her. Which is really not healthy for either of them.

April gets out of her thinking state when Donnie begins poking her leg, trying to determine the parts that hurt April.

“OW! Cut that out!” She snaps.

“Sorry.” He answers flatly, “So, by the response of your nerves, your leg is broken. I am going to have to immobilize it.”

“Go ahead, then.” April says.

While Donnie starts, Raph hands April an ice pack,

“Put dat on your head…” He orders.

April does, and silence fills the room. Uncomfortable silence, which April is desperate to break, but can’t think of a proper conversation to open.

“Hey, Guys…” Mikey does the job for her, all attention turning to him, except Donnie’s whose focused on April’s leg, “…remember when April did something like this years ago?”

There is a quick pause, before Leo says, “Right! There is… more than one time actually.”

“Yeah, April was a total craze in the first years we met…” Raph says with a smile.

“Still is.” Donnie adds in an uninterested tone.

April smiles, “Aww, you guys…!” She waves her hand, acting as if being praised.

Mikey chuckles, “I’m talking about a specific time… the time where we went skiing. Anyone remember?”

“Aha…” Donnie’s the one to say.

_“C’mon, guys! Nobody will see you!” April, a 13-year-old girl, called enthusiastically at the bush between the snow._

_“Are ya sure, April?” The bush asked, which brought up Raph’s voice._

_“Yup! This is a special place I always ski in every year, and **never** once did I see a human pass by. Come on!! Isn’t this your first time, guys? You should try something new!”_

_The turtles gradually came out of the bush, one by one, and finally approached the girl with their equipment and ski-clothes. April chuckled at the timid and nervous expressions, and decided to act annoyed,_

_“I’m starting to think that you don’t trust me!” She crossed her arms, scoffing her head._

_“NO! WE’RE COMING!” Mikey yelled, being the first to sprint and stand beside April._

_April smiled at the 10-year-old, encouraging him, “Good! Is Mikey the only one who trusts me?” She called again at the rest._

_“I’m here.” Donnie said in a dead-pan tone, suddenly beside April._

_“I-I’m gonna try…” Leo said timidly._

_“Raph’s ready, too!”_

_“Alright, guys! Don’t think, just go, and you’ll find balance! Ready?”_

_“Uuuhhh…”_

_“GO!” She fled down the hill, “WEEEEEEEE!”_

_“OHMIGOSH, SHE JUST RAN IN!!” Mikey freaked, and the others did the same as they screamed._

_“THIS IS. SO. FUUUUUN!” They heard April call while sliding._

_Mikey was hesitating, yet decided to follow, “Okay, here goes nothing……… AAAAAAAAAAAA!” He screamed as he slid down._

_“MIKEY!” His older brothers shrieked, were about to grab him but were too late._

_“DON’T WORRY GUYS, HE’S WITH ME!” April reassured, as Mikey was now beside her, still screaming._

_“MIKEY, Mikey calm down!”_

_“I WANNA GO HOME!!” He cried._

_“No, no, Mikey! Look! You’re skiing!” She pointed enthusiastically at his feet, in which Mikey turned to._

_“I’m… skiing?”_

_“YEAH!”_

_“I’M SKIIIIIIIING!!” He brought his hands up._

_April chuckled slightly, before frowning upon remembering something. She looked ahead, to gasp, the huge rock she’d always crashed into laid there in front of Mikey’s lane, just a few feet away._

_“MIKEY!” She screamed, pushing the smallest turtle (who was not aware, still laughing) just as he was about hit the rock. Unfortunately, that made her take his place, which resulted in her receiving a strong hit._

_By the time Mikey recovered from rolling down the hill, April was out cold._

Everything pauses for several minutes, each one in the room shivering slightly at the last bit of the memory.

“Damn… I don’t even remember what happened after that…” April mutters.

“That’s because you fainted…” Mikey says, full of grieve.

“Right…” April utters.

“L-Let’s remember somethin’ else, alright?” Raph says, trying to ease the tension, “Something that doesn’ involve… sacrifices…”

“Oh, I got it!” Donnie clicks his fingers, “My first try on the jetpack! Who remembers this?”

“Only you and Apes, Donnie…” Leo says, “We weren’t even there…”

“Yeah, right _, not that I minded_ …” Donnie whispers the last part.

“Why don’t ya tell us ‘bout it, then?” Raph urges.

“Hmmm, let me recall…”

_“You certain you wanna come with me, April? This is going to be the first trial…” The 12-year-old scientist warned._

_“Don’t sweat it, Dee!” She waved a hand, “It’s gonna be like I’m not even there!”_

_“I one-hundred-percent doubt that, but it wouldn’t hurt if you came along. You don’t weigh much. I guess I can carry you…” He muttered to himself, putting a hand on his chin._

_“Oh, cool! I’m gonna be the first human being to fly without a plane!” She exclaimed in excitement._

_“Scientifically speaking, this is untrue.” Donnie cut while raising a finger, “Humans nowadays fly with helicopters, rockets, even artificial win-”_

_“I get it!” April said annoyingly, crossing her arms, “Now, when are we riding it? I can’t wait!” She squeaked while jumping up and down._

_“Right about now, actually.” Donnie tapped something on his wrist communicator which opened a section in the lab, exposing the brand-new jetpack. April mused and her eyes turned to stars,_

_“Woooaaaah…”_

_“Alright, now we find a good spot topside…”_

**_Topside~_ **

_“Ohmygood! Thisissocool! Ican’tbelievethis! I’mgonnafly!!”_

_“Would you please calm down?” Donnie snapped, and April obeyed, yet still emitting noises of excitement._

_After Donnie wore his tech behind his shell, he turned to April, “Now hop on. God,Ihopethisworks…” He whispered the last statement._

_April took no time to do as told, shoving herself on Donnie’s back with more power than intended, which caused the turtle to grunt._

_“Oops, sorry!” April sheepishly apologized, “NOW FLYYYYYYY!”_

_“Ow my ears…” Donnie said with no emotion, grimacing. Tapping on the device on his wrist, he readied himself,_

_“Hold on. Tightly.”_

_April did, and Donnie steadily began hovering off the ground. April gasped so hard, her hold tightening a bit too much from exhilaration. Donnie began hovering himself away from the building they were just standing on, and the streets were now beneath them, accompanied by the couple of short buildings they passed._

_“WEHOOOOOOO!” April screamed, and Donnie smiled,_

_“I have to admit, it feels more of a success when achieving it with someone else…”_

_“See? You gotta bring me with you more ofte-”_

_Before she could finish the sentence, a beep ran from the jet pack, followed by some more beeps, then a voice,_

_“ Overweight!!”_

_Donnie freaked out when the jet stopped mid-air, opening his communicator to check the problem._

_“Donnie, what’s going on??” April asked as the word now was repeating._

_“I don’t know!! It should have said that when we were on the roof! Not in mid-air!”_

_“Can’t you move us to a safer place?” April suggested, as the only thing beneath them right now was a short building, a 15-feet drop at least._

_“NO! I DESIGNED IT SO I CANNOT FLY WITH IT UNLESS IT’S SAFE! TEN SECONDS AND WE’RE GOING TO FALL!”_

_April looked down, the constant beeping sound getting faster by the second, and only one option remained…_

_She untied her legs, now dangling from Donnie by the neck._

_“April?” He turned his head half-way._

_April smiled, “I guess… that’s the right thing to do…”_

_And let go._

_“APRIL!!”_

_Landing on her feet the wrong way, both of her ankles snapped in the process, and she shrieked…_

“…”

“WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!” Leo screams.

“THIS IS A MILLION TIMES WORSE THAN THE SKI INCIDENT!!” Mikey yells.

“DONNIE, YOU’RE TERRIBLE!” Leo scolds.

“WHEN DID THAT EVEN HAPPEN?!” Raph asks.

“GUYS, calm down…” April tries to assure, “He sat me in front of a hospital, and they took care of the situation…” She says, refusing to mention how Donnie cried like there was no tomorrow.

“THAT DOESN’T MAKE IT BETTER!” The three scream.

“That’s traumatizing, dude! How did you two brush it off like it’s nothing…?” Leo asks.

“Eh…” April shrugs, “…Donnie was actually pretty down for some couple of hours. I called him, and bam!”

“Don’t tell them that…” Is Donnie’s only response.

“A couple of hours?!” Leo repeats

“You two are unbelievable!” Mikey says, “I’m shaking and I wasn’t even there!”

“Yeah, someone _please_ tell us a different story.” Raph pleads, “I can’t take this!”

“I know!” Leo says suddenly, “Remember the time April decided to be a kunoichi?”

“This doesn’t involve some traumatizing stuff, does it?” Raph asks.

“Nah, bro! And you were even there, too! It was pretty funny!”

“I don’ remember…” Raph says, “Say it, then!”

“Alright…”

_April jumped up and down, warming herself up in the sparring area, “I’m ready!”_

_“April, you gotta know that we’re not even close to being perfect ninjas…” Raph said._

_“Oh, it’s fine!” April brushed it off, “If Splinter’s too lazy to train me, I got you guys!!”_

_“Come on, Raph!!” Leo urged, as excited as April, “It’s gonna be fun!”_

_Raph sighed in defeat, “Very well. First game of catch the bandana. Leo vs April! Who gets the others’ bandana first, wins!” He announced._

_April got her place in front of the dummy, which had a yellow bandana wrapped around it. Leo took his place in front of the one that had a blue bandana. Narrowing their eyes, and hunching their backs, they both waited for the signal…_

_“Three, two, one… GO!” He fired the sound-gun._

_The two teens dashed at each other while yelling, and soon enough their hands contacted with each other. April tried to trip Leo by scooting down, but Leo saw what she was attempting to do, and jumped before he could fall down. As she tried to completely regain her balance, Leo took the opportunity and…_

“…”

“Uh… why did you stop?” April asks, trying to put her mind on what happened after that.

“I remember now…” Raph says, his face falling.

“You… took one hit and… flew across the room…” Leo says slowly in a horrified tone, recalling the incident.

“Oh… that time…” April finally remembers.

Silence heaves the infirmary, each one now refusing to tell any more stories.

“But do you remember what happened after that?” April asks rhetorically, for Leo to look up at her.

_“APRIL, ARE YOU OKAY???”_

_“I guess, yeah…” She grimaced, then in a flash, she jumped, “AGAIN! AGAIN!”_

Leo smiles, “Yeah… I do…” He pauses, “You never really let those things bring you down…”

“…Even when staying with us cause you too much trouble…” Raph adds, more sadly.

“…Actually, most of the time we question why you’re still hanging out with us…” Mikey says, brushing his arm.

April raises an eyebrow, too baffled by the words she’s hearing.

“…From the injuries you receive, to the recklessness of our actions; you still stick through.” Donnie says, backing off from the now fully treated leg, “…why?”

“Yeah… it doesn’t make sense…” Mikey says, “I mean, you’re awesome, April. And we’re… we’re just mutants under the sewers…”

“We think you deserve better than this…” Raph lowers his head, "Better than us." He finishes.

April stares at the four with wide eyes, who are now looking down and averting their eyes in shame. She takes a big breath, frowning in sheer annoyance, and,

“ARE YOU GUYS _CRAZY_?!”

The four turtles jump, forcing their eyes to focus on their friend.

“THAT _IS_ THE DEFINITION OF FRIENDSHIP!! DO YOU GUYS THINK I’D STICK AROUND IF ALL WE DO IS JUST EAT ICE CREAM AND TAKE STROLLS OUTSIDE?”

The guys remain silent.

“NO! I STICK AROUND BECAUSE YOU’RE AWESOME! BECAUSE I LOVE YOU! AND… you even feel more of a family now. I can’t just decide and abandon you…”

“B-But, April… You keep taking punishments for _our_ mistakes!” Leo interjects, “Don’t you feel… tired because of it?”

“OF COURSE NOT!” April screams immediately, “Besides, how many times did _you guys_ take hits for me? A bajillion! Even more than I can count!”

The turtles stare at her, still reluctant.

“Because… that’s what friends do… Live through the best and worst, _together_ …” She says, “And… maybe the scars I receive remind me of painful incidents, but then I remember why I did what I did… to protect the people I care about…” She smiles absentmindedly, staring at her casted-leg.

Leo, Don, Raph and Mikey feel a twinge of overwhelming emotions in unison, before April looks up at them with a smile,

“Can you promise me that we’re gonna keep doing that? Going on dangerous missions, protecting one other, and making memories? Together?”

The guys almost tear up, and all go to hug their bestfriend, who smiles in satisfaction.

“We promise…” They all say in unison, clutching harder.

“I know…” She replies, a faint smile on her lips.

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I believe April is the most reckless and is the first to get injured. I literally love her so f-ing much!!
> 
> Did you like it, [Bella](https://twitter.com/bastardbeewoman?s=20)? ^^
> 
> Wanna request a fic? Click [here](https://curiouscat.qa/UniPopcorn1414)!!
> 
> Contact me on Twitter! You can find me [@UniPopcorn1414](https://twitter.com/UniPopcorn1414)! <3


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